1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a passive seat belt system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various passive seat belt systems have heretofore been suggested. One type of passive seat belt system is a so-called three point system which includes a fixed length of webbing attached to upper and lower portions of the vehicle door and a junction ring slidably mounted on the webbing and attached to a length of webbing which is stowed on a seat belt retractor mounted inboard of the seat, such as under a center arm rest. A disadvantage of such system is that ingress by the occupant is inconvenient because the webbing lies close to the seat cushion and the occupant must lift the webbing and slide under the webbing to insure that the webbing is automatically placed in its proper position upon actuation of a predetermined event, such as closing of the vehicle door.
Various devices have been proposed to move the inboard belt position upwards and forwards, commensurate with door opening, to alleviate the above problems. An example of one such system is that disclosed in my U.S. Application Ser. No. 62,277 filed July 30, 1979, in which an auxiliary power device is utilized to move the webbing forwards. However, such devices tend to be expensive and complicated as they require an auxiliary power device to operate the articulation device. Other proposed devices require an intentional act by the occupant to move the belt to a noninterferring position. It would be desirable if a passive seat belt system were provided that alleviated the above problems.